I forgot that this was happening! I swear, I do try to keep up with all of the upcoming royal functions, I just forget sometimes. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are spending the day in South Yorkshire (Rotherham) for a series of events, like opening up McLaren Automotive’s new Composites Technology Centre and making a visit to a local Centrepoint hostel (William has long been a Centrepoint patron). They’re due back in London this evening for the big blowout party for Prince Charles’ 70th birthday.
For today’s events, Kate repeated an Eponine London dress in her favorite shade of blue. She wore this for the first time in January 2017, when she made a trip to the Anna Freud Centre in London. I still like this (£1,650) dress – I love the tailoring around the waist, the length is good, and I don’t even mind the reverse pleats or the buttons!
The Daily Mail is making a big deal about Kate’s “bouncy blow dry,” and I guess I can see why – Kate’s hair is the first thing I noticed too, but not because of her fresh blowout. It’s because in the Rotherham light, you can really see how much Kate has lightened her hair after her third pregnancy. Kate usually changes up her hair after she gives birth, sometimes she’ll get some fringe, sometimes she’ll chop off several inches. This time, she took off several inches AND she radically lightened her hair. I’m not sure how I feel about it – I actually liked it when she was doing a rich, chocolate brown dye.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
I really love the fit and color of the dress, and it is appropriate, which is all I really care about anyway. I’m not a fan of the lighter hair because I don’t think it suits. She looks happy and comfortable in it, though, and that’s what matters.
Lord, this is gorgeous and I want it … I’m too busty to wear it but I would look at it in my closet every day.
I hear ya on the busty girl problems. I would love to wear some of the style that smaller busted ladies can pull off!!
This is one of her better dresscoats.
Say what you want about her style but her dresses, dresscoats and coats always have impeccable fit. Good fit can elevate an entire look to the next level.
Completely agree. Her clothes fit her well. She also seems so much happier lately.
Yes, it’s less stuffy looking than some of the others. I kind of like the hair color too.
And her dresses almost always look well-pressed/unwrinkled. Though Meghan’s clothes are more updated, sometimes she looks not as well put-together as Kate. Maybe it’s because of the style/cut of her clothes, the particular cloth her dresses are made of, or maybe sometimes the clothes were not just tailored to her body type. I know a lot of you loved her wedding dress, and I liked the style but to me it was not well-fitted (some say because Meghan lost a lot of weight. But she was to be married to a Royal. Im pretty sure they could more than afford to make any last-minute adjustments).
Love the colour combination of the hair and that great shade of blue.
I really like her hair here! And she looks great in blue. She just looks so much happier after Louis, it’s hard not to be rooting for her.
I like her hair darker, too. Sets off her skin and eyes better. And while I think she looks better with the extra 5-10 lbs. from pregnancy, she looks SO happy since Louis’ birth! In every pic we’ve seen since then, she just glows! Lovely 😊. William looks happier and more relaxed, too.
Wait, what? This is William looking relaxed? I think he looks pissed, or tense, or something and she’s making up for it, apparently. She looks lovely. He looks….grumpy? That tight line around his mouth?
It’s just a particular picture. There are more pictures (I am seeing them on Twitter) and he looks really happy and relaxed.
William has always had a resting bi&ch face, it just seems more pronounced since he lost his hair.
“Extra” 5-10 lbs?!?! Surely you jest. She is quite thin already – look at that tiny waist for goodness sake. If she had weight to lose where does that leave the rest of us.. I am 5’6” & 120 lbs & I am chubby compared to Kate
I took it to mean that she looked better with those extra 5-10 pregnancy lbs before she lost all the baby weight.
I like the hair. I liked the more rich brown a lot too – but I like this shade very much. I also like the length.
My nails match her coat at the moment haha.
I like the overall look very much.
I think the highlights make her look younger.
I commented below but here I go again. I don’t like red hair and it looks reddish. I wish she would have had a more beigish highlight, not too blonde, or they’d go bonkers over there, just more in the blonde family. She’s a pretty woman and if you’re going to highlight, do it right! *No offense to the red haired amongst us. Just not my preference…see Harry is lucky he will be bald…oops wrong thread!*
Nancy, yes, I wish the highlights didn’t have a reddish cast.
Great minds think alike minx 😊
I love this coat! Although I also did like Kate’s hair darker I think it makes her look younger having it lighter.
Go too light though and it’ll make one look older…..
1. I love her hair. The color and cut suits her.
2. I love the shoes! They aren’t the nude pumps!!!
Ugh, the curse of dark hair. As you get older and more grey creeps in you have to go lighter or spend every waking moment in the salon covering the VERY noticeable greys. Perhaps not as much of an inconvenience for Kate as for the rest of us, haha.
Wait really? I’ve recently started getting grey hairs and I’m feeling like my hair stylist has not properly prepared me lol.
Yes, you have to lighten your hair as you get older, or you wind up looking like you very obviously dye your hair black.
Yes. It’s the reason why famous readheads like Nicole Kidman now stick to blond hair. It’s easier to hide the grey.
Truth. My hair naturally is a very dark brown, and my gray strands are shiny freaking silver. Looks like someone put very skinny tinsel in my hair. I just have the roots touched up regularly with a semi-permanent deposit product-the silver takes the color differently than the dark brown, and it keeps some dimension in my hair.
I had a really bad experience at a salon in April and lost 10 inches of hair, and since then, I haven’t wanted to take any kind of risks or lighten it again. New stylist is giving me confidence so…maybe next year.
This times 1000. I know this is not the end of the world but it drives me crazy. Thank you for reassuring me I am not the only one with this issue. I am in my early forties. I have had this issue for ten years. I have my hair colored and literally within two weeks, I can see the grey hair coming in. I even use a root touch up to try to hide it. The individual who colors my hair stated that the answer is going lighter. I do feel like if I continue with dark hair, I am going to resemble Lily from the Munsters.
Yes to this. I have very dark brown hair and while I don’t have a ton of gray hairs, I have a few and they stick out like a sore thumb. I’m not currently dying it as I don’t have enough to warrant it, I just pick them out. But my aunt and mom both had the same rich dark brown hair I had when they were young. They both dye their hair, my mom’s is significantly lighter than mine but not close to blond. My aunt for awhile was lightening her hair to the point that one day I exclaimed “When did you decide to go blonde???” She was surprised and said it wasn’t blonde but I looked at her and I’m not color blind, her hair was not remotely in the “brown” category any longer. If you don’t have a good hairstylist, you can easily go way too light over time without realizing it. Kate is most definitely getting her hair treated on a regular basis and I don’t mind the lighter hair, but it is the curse of having dark hair.
I always wonder when she wore a repeat how I felt about it the first time around, but I don’t feel like reading the old comments to see my opinion this time LOL.
Anyway, I like this overall look. It’s a good color on her; if its a coatdress it skews more towards dress than coat which I like (but it might just be a dress?). This is a good classic Kate look. And, while we like to make fun of buttons, here I don’t mind them because they make an otherwise relatively boring dress more interesting.
I like her hair this color. I liked it darker too – maybe two years ago when she had it that darker shade? I loved that. But I like it a bit lighter, it reminds me of how it looked when she was pregnant with George and I thought it looked good then. I also like how smooth it is with just a bit of curl.
So overall – very nice look. Yay Kate! LOL.
Hilarious first paragraph, Becks1.
This is a good colour on her and the style of the coat dress isn’t too frou frou or matronly.
I like it, kind of prefer the dark but I’m guessing this might be a pragmatic decision… scattered highlights makes greys much easier to hide than all dark chocolate mane!
Coat dresses are just bad in my opinion. This one is way too plain.
It is such a ridiculous concept. I have never seen anyone wear one. So frumpy. Wear a dress. Wear a coat and dress. Or wear a suit.
I thought it’s practical for getting quickly in and out of cars and into buildings. Dress-and-coat combos seem to be the mainstay of QE’s and Camilla’s wardrobe so maybe they are seen as more dowager-y. Suits would work, though, and she has some good ones. But I think the coatdress is a good work wear solution for Kate’s work, such as it is.
Good professional look.
Let the keen work continue.
**yawn** She’s a bore.
I’ve used the link in the article to look back at the pics from the first time she wore this coatdress as I couldn’t remember it. The difference between Kate then and now is considerable. Maybe they were bad pictures first time round but she looks so much more confident and professional now. I like the outfit and her new hair colour.
She definitely looks happier here – and her hair looks so much better. I forgot when she went through that phase with the clips and ringlets. This is overall a much better look, just with the different hair.
It could be that Kate is graying at a rapid rate and the lighter hair is easier to hide that fact than with darker hair (something my stylist tells me frequently and vehemently). Fewer roots showing and a slightly longer time between necessary touchups.
I love the new style but yuck – I hate her new orange hair color.
She looks fantastic. The dress, the hair, but also just her general manner. She seems happier and more confident.
Kate seems very upbeat and pleased to be there so that’s nice to see. I like the color and it’s a flattering silhouette but I don’t like the raised detail on the dress and the belt loops, and the fabric looks cheap.
She tends to go for more of a red/orange color when she lightens her hair and I don’t know the right terminology but if she went for more of a light ash brown, maybe it would look better?
I agree. She has the perfect coloring for a cooler light brown.
A good toner put on after the color would take away the brassiness (unless, that IS the color she’s going for). Then, use a “purple” shampoo 1-2 times a wk. for “maintenance” (been there, done it, got the (stained) T-Shirt lol).
After my hair grew back in after chemo, I decided to embrace what came in. It’s darker than my “natural” color, and there is a LOT of silver… and to be honest, I’m LOVING it. The silver sparkles and gives it a depth; and as I have a convertible, a lot of deep red highlights are coming in from the sun as well. I get a lot of compliments on my hair. (Personally, I would love it if, eventually, it went white/silver, but my hair stylist said if that was to happen, I’d be a lot whiter by now… le sigh).
I don’t find it brassy. It’s a warm, lighter brown to me, and while it’s not ashy, I wouldn’t go as far to call it brassy really. I guess it depends on the device you’re using and the display settings – but I don’t see anything wrong with warmer browns.
It must be intentional on her part. She has access to the best so this must be what she chose. I think she’d look great if she went for a cooler brown.
Your hair color sounds really lovely. I started getting greys in my late twenties and my whole color dulled so I get some highlights and lowlights now to get some depth and light.
I’m 44 and my hair is about 70% silver and gray with the remainder a cool dark brown. A little over a year ago I took the plunge and cut it as short as I was willing to go (a blunt cut at about my jaw) and stopped coloring it. I cut it religiously every 4 weeks and about eight months later, all the color was out of it. At that point I started letting it grow again.
Now it’s down around my collarbones and I like it in person, but it looks flat and not nearly as attractive in photos. I’m trying to decide what to do with it next.
I like the dress – good color and fit for her. Not sure how I feel about the hair. It’s not a bad highlight job, but I feel like those lighter shades would be more appropriate for summer/spring than the winter months, eh? The light always help warms it up.
lighter hair perhaps to keep up with the stray greys better. lol makes me wonder how often the super dark-haired over 35 kardashians have to be touching up roots, probably once a week, what a bother!
Going the opposite way, it was said Marilyn Monroe (who was naturally mid-dark haired) touched up her platinum roots EVERY FOUR DAYS! OMG I can’t begin to imagine that maintenance!! When I was blonde (I went back to my childhood shade), even every 4 wks for roots and every 8 wks for highlights was exhausting (and expensive!).
Eh both my father and I have black hair and neither of us have gray hair. He was almost 70 when he passed and still no gray. My mom and sister both have light brown to blonde hair and both already have grays.
My brother has black hair and he started going grey at 16. I started turning grey at 27, shortly after I got pregnant.
I don’t care for coat dresses. Seems like a cop-out and a lack of imagination.
Is she no longer doing individual engagements?
I am also not sure how many visiting fancy sports car engagements they need to do either. There are a few of her patronages that haven’t been seen at all this year. Catherine Quinn should be trying to add more content now.
@Flying fish – she’s not supposed to be imaginative. Imaginative is for movie stars and rock musicians and models. She’s supposed to be a bit boring. They had a real “star” with Diana – didn’t work out too well, did it?
Enough with the dress coats. So boring.
Take it from a brunette— we really get so bored and tired of the “stick to the dark brown” schtick and are always itching to change it up. Much to our dismay this is usually not a flattering thing, though…. but we have to still go back and try it again every now and then And then we quickly revert to the boring but fitting rich shades.
Haha, yes!
Looks great, engaged and happy. I’m on board with the Keen Kate 2.0 along with Will pulling up his socks too!
Nice that she is wearing things she’s worn before. This one is good except the belt is too high above the waist. I don’t think the shoes and clutch could be any more Unimaginative. She did change the bag from the last time, though…..from suede to leather. For once I wish we could see something with a pattern when she wears a solid color coat dress! I’m a shoe person, and she obviously is not.
The first time she wore this dress, her hair was way too dark. This time it’s too light.
She looks great, it fits well and she looks happy. I would like it if she eased of the Peter Pan collars but it’s a minor quibble.
I like the highlights. Bet she wishes she could have had more and a touch lighter highlight. I think highlights look the best on brown hair. When you’re hair is too dark, it looks skunky or like Lilly Munster. I have natural highlights, only because my hair is blonde.
Love the highlights. But anytime one changes their coloring, hair, skin, and otherwise, make up and clothing needs to change also. She needs a sunnier look with that hair… maybe lighter blue or navy coat. The jewel-tone blue looks better with rich, chocolate hair. And for once I miss the blush…again the hair needs more color and and she looks rather pale.
Meg has been the best PR Kate could’ve hoped for; I’ve never seen her receive so many positive comments on nearly every site.
I think she looks great, and I like the lighter hair.
Just realized I’m a fan of blue.
Kate looks so happy here! Before Louis I always did feel there was a performative aspect to her looking engaged at events but now it seems to come more naturally. Maybe with a house full of kids and chaos, she has realized not to sweat the small stuff? I like her outfit and I think I liked it the first time she wore it.
She looks professional and her hair is better without the sausage curls. It gets more difficult to colour hair as it greys which might explain the orangey look in certain light. I don’t blame her for wanting a lighter colour because it softens facial features.
Those highlights look a bit orange. Count me as one who liked her darker hair.
Was she pregnant the first time she worse this? Her face looks like a different person then. She really is looking great now.
I’m guessing her hair pulls really red when it’s lightened and she probably just needs a bit of toner to cool it a bit, but I actually don’t mind it lighter even though I associate her with that dark, glossy brunette hair.
It seems like she’s getting into a better pattern of mixing repeats with new stuff. I’m guessing she’ll pull out a new dress for Charles’s birthday tonight and I’m a little sad we probably won’t get a picture of everyone dressed up inside BP.
This is the kind of look Kate does so well – it suits her and her role perfectly, to look dignified yet feminine, and well tailored and turned out. She’s not supposed to rock fashion, that isn’t her role. The whole thing hangs together and most importantly, she’s wearing the clothes, they aren’t wearing her. Nice color, stands out so she can be seen, but isn’t garish. Beautifully fitted, as well. The point is to look like a future Queen Consort and appealing but not threatening. That’s her role, sartorially, and I think this outfit encapsulates it perfectly. Very much like the slightly shorter, looser hair, as well.
I like her hair. It’s a colour I’d consider getting, if I ever feel like spending hundreds of dollars for a cut and colour. (curse of having thick hair… I always get charged extra for colour, and that just annoys me, so I end up buying box dye at Walmart. Sigh)
Anyone else think that Kate had some work done on her face? The lines in her forehead are practically non-existent.
Odd question but does she have a dress on under the coatdress? Is it for outdoor events? I have never understood a coatdress.
I think she looks great and so happy! Since P. Louis’ birth, she has seemed almost “carefree” and so much more relaxed at her events.
I’ve got no issues. I’m a rather plain dresser-so looks like this I find really attractive. 🙂
She is walking in front of will – call the protocol police. They will be outraged. Or does it not matter when it is the cambridges and she.will.be.queen.
I think she looks nice actually. No fly-away hems, not too many buttons, nice flattering shape, beautiful colour and no sausage curls. The new hair colour seems to brighten up her face as well, along with her new found confidence, she really has been looking great recently. I don’t still fully trust Wills not to have a wandering eye somehow, but I really hope that they have a good, solid marriage, and not just play acting. I think with her being more confident actually is helping him, he doesn’t seem as pissy as much and looks genuinely warmer when they are together. Hopefully this glow lasts.
I think she’d look great (more grown-up and polished) with a sleek chocolate brown chin-length bob.
This hair color somehow clashes with her face/skin. I don’t quite know what it is about it that I hate so much, but I feel like it maybe just looks a little off because it is not the right tone for her AT ALL. She needs cooler colors. This is way too warm. It looks horrible. Just my opinion.
I gave birth two months before her and I still can’t fit into my old clothes… ☹️